Development of a digital escape room to raise awareness of the effects of climate change on human health

Climate change presents an increasing threat to human life and health. The World Health Organisation has predicted that malnutrition, malaria, diarrhoea and heat stress alone will cause around 250,000 additional deaths annually between 2030 and 2050. However, the health impacts of climate change are currently sparsely taught in medical curricula. The aim of this study was therefore to develop a digital escape room to raise awareness of the effects of climate change on human health.

The escape room was hosted on a WordPress website and H5P (HTML5 Package) was used to create interactive puzzles including a crossword and jigsaw. Solving each puzzle, revealed a code to “unlock” the door. Additionally, a countdown timer set to 40 mins was coded in to simulate the physical escape room experience. During summer 2023, all current medical students were invited to play the digital escape room via email. Anonymous pre- and post-activity questionnaires were used to explore existing knowledge and interest levels in the effects of climate change on health. A second iteration of the escape room with a standalone questionnaire was ran as a face-to-face activity during induction week for incoming year 1 medical students.

Both current (n=23) and new medical students (n=66) reported an increase in self-assessed knowledge of the effects of climate change on human health after participating in the activity. The majority agreed escape rooms could effectively teach new content (91.3%, 78.8%) and should be used in medical education (91.3%, 91%). Over 80% of year 1 medical students agreed the escape room was an excellent icebreaker activity.

In conclusion, this digital escape room was an engaging and enjoyable method of teaching medical students about the impact of climate change on health.